1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to interactive play structures, and, in particular, to a kinetic interactive play structure for entertaining and educating children and adults.
2. Description of the Related Art
There has been a recent proliferation of commercial play structures designed to meet the recreational needs of young families. Such play structures can provide a safe and exciting alternative to more traditional parks and playgrounds. Conventional play structures may be grouped into two general categories: "wet" play structures and "dry" play structures. In accordance with the respective grouping a play structure may utilize either corresponding wet or dry play media and play elements.
Typical dry play structures may include a padded framework and cushioned floors defining a variety of play elements and/or areas. Slides, tunnels, net bridges, and ladders may be used to interconnect the various play elements and play areas so that play participants can traverse from one play element or area to the next. A particularly popular dry play element is the conventional ball pit in which small, lightweight, hollow plastic balls fill an enclosed pen of a predetermined depth. Play participants jump into the pen and are partially or fully submerged in the balls. Play participants may also throw the balls in the air or at one another. Other typical dry play elements may include viewing towers, rope swings, soft hanging bags and rotating padded drums and the like. Typical wet play structures may include various devices for cooling and entertaining play participants using water. Several popular wet play elements include water slides, spray guns, spray hoses, waterfalls, sprinklers, buckets, and the like.
Most conventional play structures are "passive." That is, the various play elements are normally static or react only to forces imparted directly by the play participants. While passive play structures can be entertaining, they do not generally stimulate the development of creative thinking or problem solving abilities. It is preferred to provide a play structure that is "active" or "interactive" in order to allow play participants to operate and control any one of a number of play elements while observing and learning about the associated causes and effects. For example, my U.S. Pat. No. 5,194,048 and related design patent D330,579 first disclosed the concept of participatory or interactive waterplay in which play participants can operate any one of a number of valves to adjust the amount of water spraying from one or more associated water effects. Play participants adjust the various valves and can immediately observe the change in the quality, rate or direction of water produced by the associated water effect. Interactive play allows play participants to experiment with and learn about various cause-and-effect reactions using any one of a number of familiar and entertaining play mediums, such as water, balls, balloons or the like. Small children, particularly, can benefit from the fun learning experiences garnered from such interactive play activities.
Heretofore, the design of commercial interactive play structures has centered around providing many different interactive play elements which can be operated independently and simultaneously to achieve a variety of desired effects. While such play structures present the opportunity for group interaction, the elements of group cooperation and team work are not specifically encouraged. In fact, in many respects these play structures are designed to foster individual competitiveness amongst the various play participants rather than cooperativeness, with each play participant competing to douse other play participants with water or balls, or to strike a particular target or otherwise achieve a desired individual effect.